5:32 PM
Marco: "Finally, home at last."
Melany: "Oh Hon, you're back! How was work?"
Marco: "Same old, same old. But hey, are you sure it's okay for you to be moving around already? You just got out of the hospital."
Melany: "What, you think I'm lazy? I gave birth a month ago—I'm good now. I can move just fine."
Marco: "It's just... the doctor said your delivery might be risky. I was scared something might happen. But thankfully, everything went well—even though I couldn't be there. I'm really grateful Dad was around to support you."
Melany: "Yeah. Speaking of your dad, he said he and Nasya made it safely to Luzon."
Captain: "That's right. He took Nasya to the city, on the doctor's advice, so she can be checked at a more advanced hospital."
The barangay captain lets out a deep sigh.
Captain: "I just hope she's okay. She was born only a month ago."
Adrian's expression shifts when he hears that.
Adrian: "Wait... if that's the case, then there were two women carrying babies at the time—the barangay captain's wife and the woman who got murdered."
Adrian says this to himself, listening through the hidden sticker he secretly planted on Marco earlier.
5:52 PM
Minutes pass. The barangay captain is busy working at his desk while his wife prepares dinner in the kitchen. Suddenly, Marco's phone rings. He answers and puts it on loudspeaker.
Tanod: "Captain! Our entire warehouse is currently on fire!"
Marco: "WHAT?! How did it happen?"
Tanod: "We don't know yet, sir!"
Marco: "I'm heading there now. Make sure the fire doesn't spread to the plantation!"
Tanod: "Yes, Captain!"
Hearing the call, Melany quickly rushes into her husband's office.
Melany: "Wait—what happened?"
Marco: "Bad news. The warehouse Dad was managing... it's on fire. I have to go there now."
Melany: "Then I'm coming with you."
Marco: "You still need to rest."
Melany: "No. I'm your wife, and you need help in case something happens."
Marco lets out a sigh.
Marco: "Alright, hop in the van. We're leaving now."
Adrian, who has been listening in with a serious expression, mutters to himself:
Adrian: "This is bad. The other group must've done it... and it's probably connected to the curse we're investigating. Either way, I have to follow the captain."
The barangay captain grabs his keys and rushes outside, jumping into his car and speeding off.
6:07 PM
After arriving at the site of the burned warehouse, a large crowd had gathered. People murmured among themselves, each sharing their own theory about what had happened. Firefighters were still dousing the smoldering structure with water.
Tanod 1: "Captain, you're here!"
Marco: "What in the world happened?!"
Tanod 2: "We're not sure. When we got here, the place was already in flames. The people your father hired—only they might know what went down."
Marco: "Then where are they now?"
Tanod 2: "We don't know. They just vanished. Maybe they're out looking for whoever did this."
Marco: "Any casualties?"
Both tanods fall silent.
Marco: "Hey! What happened?!"
Tanod 1: "We found five bodies inside the warehouse. They're over there."
Marco: "WHAT?! How?!"
Tanod 2: "We don't know!"
Marco puts a hand on his head, his face heavy with concern.
Marco: "I need to speak to my father—he's the one in charge here. Where are the bodies?"
One of the tanods points toward an open area nearby. The burned corpses lie on the ground, covered by blankets. A man in a police uniform is already beside them. He removes one of the covers to examine the remains.
Adrian: "They were burned from the inside... whatever did this probably caused the fire too."
It's Adrian, disguised in a police uniform. He had followed Marco and Melany without being noticed.
Adrian: "Does anyone recognize these bodies?"
Tanod 1: "That's the strangest part, sir. They don't look like they're from around here. We even asked some locals if they recognized them or if anyone from their family was missing. So far, no one knows anything."
Suddenly, Melany steps into the conversation, her face tense with concern.
Marco: "What are you doing here?!"
Melany: "Some of your Tanod's just called. They said the barangay hall is a mess—especially the second floor."
Marco: "What the heck?! Are we under attack or something? Terrorists? I need to get there ASAP. You two—stay here and follow whatever this officer says."
Tanod 1 & 2: "Yes, sir!"
Adrian: "No—let me come with you. If it really is terrorists, you'll need me."
Melany narrows her eyes at Adrian, suspicion growing on her face.
8:30 PM
After the battle, Elayna supported Ramel, helping him walk despite his battered condition. His clothes were torn, bloodied, and his steps were heavy—but he was alive.
Ramel: "I heard from the Tiktik that you two were dealing with another one… From the looks of it, you both made it out—and even showed up to help me."
Elayna: "Mostly thanks to Venus. We managed to take it down before it could take us down."
She paused, then glanced at Ramel curiously.
Elayna: "Hey… how did it feel?"
Ramel: "Hmm?"
Elayna: "Fighting them. What was it like? Andaya asked me the same question earlier. I wanna hear someone elses take."
Ramel thought for a moment, his face tightening with the memory.
Ramel: "They're... overwhelming. When I fought Tasyo, the first thing I thought was he has enough strength to kill someone like me. Then when I fought the real one… my first thought was, I'm not walking away from this without backup. I was sure I was gonna die. Forcing the fight outside on my own? That was a bad call. If all three of us had gone at them together from the start, maybe it would've been smarter."
Elayna: "No—I actually think you made the right call in that moment. I was unconscious, Venus was focused on saving the kid, and you bought us time. If you hadn't forced it outside, we wouldn't have had a chance to regroup."
A voice cut in from above them.
Venus: "The only mistake you made was trying to finish it alone."
She was standing over them.
Venus: "Stalling was probably the only option you had. You've got the tools to kill one—but not the skill to go head-to-head solo. So next time… don't be reckless."
Venus: "Stalling was probably the only option you had. You've got the tools to kill one—but not the skill to go head-to-head solo. So next time… don't be reckless."
Ramel: "Heh... Got it."
The three of them exchanged tired but genuine smiles.
Elayna: "Now I really wanna know how Andaya manages to handle missions like this alone."
Venus: "Well, one of his mentors—Lea, the Punong Albularyo of the 5th—told me that Andaya and our company's Pato were both candidates to become the 7th company's Pato. But Andaya turned it down. That's why our current Pato was chosen instead."
Ramel and Elayna stared at her, clearly shocked.
Venus: "Yeah... Anyone with the Tangan Panabla title has the right to be a candidate for Pato. But what surprised me most was that Andaya actually refused it. I'm not saying our current Pato doesn't deserve the role—he definitely does—but at the time, Andaya had a much better shot at getting it."
Ramel: "He must be really strong to become a candidate... and still refuse it."
Right after Ramel said that, somewhere outside the town, Andaya suddenly sneezed.
Andaya: "Hachoo!!! It's getting cold out here."
After saying that, Andaya stood at the center of a gruesome scene—surrounded by the corpses of armed henchmen, pseudo-Aswangs still oozing black miasma, and the remains of two Tiktik—while gripping the neck of the lone surviving henchman.